Pros and cons of living alone

The single life can be good for your figure but it can play havoc with a healthy lifestyle, new statistics show.

Men or women living alone are more likely to be thin and active than couples, families and single parents.

But they are also highly susceptible to poor diet and other unhealthy habits.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics said only 41.7 per cent of people in single households were obese or overweight, compared with 48.5 per cent of couples with children, the group most likely to have a weight problem.

Singles were also the most active, with only 28.7 per cent physically inactive.

Thirty-three per cent of couples with children, 34.8 per cent of single parents and 36 per cent of people in other households were inactive.

Only 7.1 per cent of the adult population had a high activity level, while more than two- thirds were inactive or had low activity levels.